Barely Breathing
by Spike'sSavior
Summary: Tim McGee is dead, but that's only the beginning of the story. Who said things get easier when you die? GhostMcGee! Abby/McGee
1. Prologue

Ok so this is the prologue so that's why it's so short. I hope you guys like this story, I haven't really seen anything like this on here before so I hope you guys like it. Please review.

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"McGee's gone Abby, I'm sorry," Ziva said softly. It was raining outside, just like it had the night Kate had died and when Gibbs had been in a coma in the hospital. The sky always cried when disaster stuck it seemed.

She stood rooted to the spot, Ziva's words ringing in her ears. McGee was gone…but he couldn't be, he had promised to bring her back a Caff-Pow, he always did when they went out in the field. He would never break a promise he made to her.

The tears came before the thought to cry even entered her mind. "But…" Abby tried to say but her voice failed her. Ziva looked at her with sorrowed and pained eyes, the assassins steps were faltering as she got closer to the distraught scientists. Abby broke completely when Ziva off all people drew her in close and held her as she sobbed.

"Tim!" Abby yelled out, her energy leaving her along with her tears.

Gibbs heard Abby scream out McGee's name from the confines of the now dark elevator. Ziva must have beaten him down to the lab as he was working up the courage to tell her that her best friend was dead. He should be there for her, but the guilt he felt was eating him up inside.

He lashed out and punched the metal doors in front of him. It wasn't fair, why did the young have to die while the old were left to live. That wasn't the way it wasn't supposed to work. Gibbs needed a drink badly, but right now he needed to try and comfort Abby and his team.

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Please review


	2. Unfinished Business

A longer chapter to make up for the really short prologue. I hope you guys like this. Please review.

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It had been four months since McGee had died. Gibbs had refused to take on a new agent to fill McGee's empty desk and he was practically drowning himself in extra strength coffee. Tony's usual joking nature was half hearted at best and he could no longer say the word 'Probie.' Ziva had locked her emotions even deeper within herself, hoping the next time she lost a friend, it wouldn't hurt as bad.

Abby' lab was always quiet now; she didn't want to listen to music she just wanted Tim back. The only person she hugged was Gibbs and that was sparingly. She felt lost and depressed, McGee had been her best friend for so long and a lover long ago and his absence had left a large hole in her heart.

"I miss you so much Timmy. I wish you were here with us, nothing's the same without you around," she said softly to the picture of him that she kept on her dresser. She wished she had taken more pictures of him, she only had a few and none of them recent.

"It's not fair Timmy," Abby said, tears filling her eyes. "Why did you have to die?"

She took a shaky breath and wiped at her tears, "I hope you and Kate are taking care of each other up there," she said softly before turning and climbing into her coffin.

She shivered as what felt like a cool breeze passed over her cheek. Suddenly she found that she couldn't cry, she felt comforted in a weird way and reached over and turned off the lamp. Abby drifted off to sleep and for the first time in months she didn't have a nightmare.

***

If there was one thing she hated about working at NCIS it was having to get up so early to go in. Rolling over she slapped her alarm clock and smiled as it stopped making its shrill cry. She stretched, cringing when some of her joints popped loudly and she thought idly that she was getting old.

Her eyes drifted over to her dresser and her heart fell as she looked at the picture of Tim. Sighing she got up to shower and get ready for work.

She got into work at a little before 7; she made sure to get a Caff-Pow before going in so she would be coherent enough to do her job. Knowing Gibbs would be the only person in the bull pen she decided that she would stop on her way down and talk to him for a moment.

Abby was correct in her assumption and smiled slightly as she saw Gibbs at his computer, typing with his two index fingers slowly. "Hey Gibbs," she said as she got closer to his desk.

"Mornin' Abs," he replied not looking up at her until he had finished typing his sentence.

"Whatcha need?" he asked.

"Nothing, just wanted to stop by and say hey before you guys got really busy," she said before taking a sip of her Caff-Pow.

He nodded and Abby felt as if he was staring right through her for a moment. "Doing better?"

"No," she said softly.

Gibbs wanted to say something to make her feel better but nothing came to mind. He was saved by having to when the elevator doors opened and Ziva and Tony strolled out of the elevator together. Gibbs was getting concerned by how often they came into work together but said nothing about it.

"Hey Ziva, hey Tony," Abby greeted, trying to be as cheerful as possible. "Hey Abby," they said with tired smiles on their faces.

"Well I should probably head down to the lab," she said before turning on her heel and heading for the elevator, making sure not to look over at McGee's desk.

Abby stopped in front of the door that led into her lab. Something was off, well not off but it felt like there was something different about the air around her. She wasn't sure if she should go back upstairs and have Gibbs check it out for her.

She shook her head, she was being stupid, the boogeyman wasn't waiting inside to eat her up. Besides she'd had three psychos come after her already and she had handled herself pretty well. She could handle whatever was inside by herself that she knew.

Her hand gripped the door handle and she slowly turned the knob and pushed the door open. There was a little light coming in from the small windows and she held her breath and her eyes widened as she saw a dark figure standing in her office area.

Ready to use her Caff-Pow as a weapon she quickly flipped on the lights and gasped when she saw who the dark figure turned out to be.

"Oh. My. God," she whispered.

The figure looked at her in confusion, looking around himself to see whatever it was that was making her act so strangely.

"McGee!" she almost yelled.

His eyes widened and his jaw dropped a bit "You can see me?" he asked in a strangled yelp.

"Oh my God, please tell me the past four months were just a nightmare, tell me you're alive," Abby said as she ran towards him.

McGee sighed "Sorry Abs, but I'm dead."

"But how can I see you, this is impossible," she said before gasping "Oh my God you aren't a zombie are?"

"Abs," McGee said with an exasperated sigh.

"You are a zombie, ahhh ZOMBIE!" she yelled.

"Abby, shut up, do I look like a zombie to you?" McGee asked.

"Well no not really, you're not rotting or anything, you look like you did on the day you left, only a lot paler," she said noting his appearance, he had on the same dark blazer jacket with a blue t-shirt and blue jeans he had worn four months prior. She was glad that he didn't appear to have a bullet hole in his neck or chest.

"I'm a ghost Abs, not a zombie, or a vampire or anything like that, just a ghost," he said hoping she wouldn't continue to scream about a zombie. He didn't want people coming down and have her rambling that she had seen him. They would send her to an asylum in no time if that happened.

"But why are you a ghost, shouldn't you go to heaven or wherever it is people go when they die?" Abby asked.

He stuck his hands in his pockets and shrugged "Well I would have but I apparently have unfinished business so I have to stay here and haunt NCIS until whatever it is I left unfinished is dealt with," he explained.

"What do you have to finish?" Abby asked.

"I don't know, they wouldn't tell me," McGee said a little bitterness in his tone.

"Who's they?" Abby asked.

"You'll find out one day Abs, you wouldn't want me to ruin the ending would you?" he asked with a small smile.

"I guess not, but how come I can see you, I mean you aren't transparent at all, you look completely solid," she said, suddenly fascinated by his state of being.

"I'm not really sure how you can see me really," he confessed.

"Am I the only one that can see you or do you think the rest of the team will as well?" Abby asked.

"I don't know Abby, I don't really have the answer to anything because I don't really know myself, I've only been dead for a little while, I haven't really had a chance to figure everything out yet," McGee explained.

"C-can I touch you, or will I just go straight through you?" Abby asked.

"I don't know, I've been able to touch a few things and move them around, how do you think your toothpaste got from one side of the sink to the other?" McGee said with a playful grin.

"You did that?" Abby asked in shock. "I thought I was going crazy, that wasn't very nice Timmy."

"Sorry, but I was curious to see if I could do it," he said.

"So…so you've been in my apartment?" Abby asked, suddenly getting nervous. "You haven't been peeping on me have you?"

"You know I wouldn't do that Abby," McGee said, insulted that she would think he would do that to her.

"Yea I guess you're right, so what have you just been following me around, what do you see me doing anyway?"

"You talk to my photo every night before you go to sleep," he said with a smile. Abby shrugged and suddenly seemed very interested in her shoes.

"Have you been to anyone else's place?" she asked trying to steer the conversation into safer territory.

"Tony's a few times, he and Ziva are rather close ya know," he said.

"I suspected but I didn't know for sure," Abby said with a smile, happy that her friends seemed to have realized that they were meant for each other.

"I've been to Gibbs place too, just watching him build that boat of his, it's really coming along nicely," he said.

"I haven't seen it in a while," Abby said, wondering if she should ask Gibbs if it was alright if she came over and helped him after work.

"I went to Ducky's once but his mom's Corgis seem to know I'm there and they kept barking and following me wherever I went," he said and Abby laughed.

"Oh Tim I missed you so much," Abby said happily and before she thought about it she launched herself at him and engulfed him in a hug. The two stared at each other in confusion as Abby held onto him and didn't pass right through. He was a lot colder than she remembered but she knew it was because he was dead.

"Guess we answered one question huh?" McGee said with a wide smile as he wrapped his arms around her and they hugged each other tightly.

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YAY McGee's back!! Next chapter should be up soon, please review


	3. State of Being

YAY new chapter. We find out more about McGee's state of being and Ziva re-enters the story. Please review.

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"So can you walk through walls?" Abby asked, she sat on the chair that McGee usually occupied when they were working together.

"Yea, but I usually walk through open doors out of habit," McGee said as he sat cross legged on the evidence table.

Abby nodded, trying to figure out what her next question would be, she had been asking him all manner of questions for the past 10 minutes. She had made sure to keep her door locked so nobody would walk in on their conversation and see her talking to "nothing".

"Oh can you float?" she asked excitedly.

McGee just grinned and Abby's eyes widened as he floated a few feet off the table. "That is the coolest thing ever."

"Yea well," McGee said as he resumed sitting on the table. "It may be cool but I'd rather be alive, you have no idea how frustrating it is to be a ghost."

Abby felt bad, "I'm sorry Tim," she said.

"Its fine, the one good thing about this whole situation is that you can see me again," Tim said with a smile. He hated seeing her so upset about his death and him not being able to tell her that he was ok and still watching over her.

"Um…did…did you see Kate?" Abby asked hesitantly.

McGee's gaze softened and he nodded "She's in heaven or what I guess you would call heaven, she told me all she had to finish was to say goodbye to everyone, she said that you saw her in some goth get up."

"That was really her!" Abby asked in shock. "I thought I was just imagining her."

McGee smiled and Abby looked at him sadly "So do you think you just have to say goodbye to everyone and then you'll be gone?"

"I asked Kate and she said it was more complicated than that but she wasn't allowed to elaborate," he explained.

Abby felt relief run through followed by a wave of guilt. It wasn't fair that McGee couldn't go to heaven and he didn't even know what he had to do to get there. "They didn't even give you a hint?" she asked.

"Yea, they said it had to do with everyone at NCIS so that's why I've been following you all around, trying to figure out what I need to do."

"Well I hope you can figure it out," Abby lied; she knew she was being selfish but she wanted McGee to be with her as long as possible now.

"Yea," McGee said softly.

They were quiet for a moment, Abby just staring at him, trying to memorize every one of his features before he was gone for good. "So do you want to know anything else?" McGee asked, breaking the silence.

"Can you move things without touching them?" Abby asked.

He laughed "I'm a ghost Abs, not telekinetic."

***

Ziva shifted the box of evidence in her hands as she pressed the button that would take her down to Abby's lab. She sighed as the elevator doors closed and the car began to move. There had been a double homicide, a Marine Sergeant and his wife had been murdered in their home, leaving behind an 8 month old baby that was surprisingly spared.

The crime scene was a veritable bloodbath and made Ziva somewhat sick. They had to catch this bastard before he made a repeat performance. The elevator doors opened up and Ziva strode out. She frowned as she saw that the door to the lab was closed. Abby always left the door open; Ziva tried the handle and was shocked that it was locked.

Ziva knocked on the door "Abby open up, I have evidence for you," she called.

"Uh…one minute Ziva," she heard Abby call out uncertainly. Something was off and Ziva could feel it, was someone in Abby's lab with her, were they dangerous and that's why the door was locked? The Mossad Officer was ready to attack whatever was making Abby so strangely.

"Hey Ziva!" Abby said cheerily as she opened the door, throwing Ziva off. She hadn't seen Abby this happy in months. Something strange was going on.

"Hello Abby, you're in a cheery mood," Ziva said.

"Oh uh, yea must be all the Caff-Pow," Abby said somewhat nervously.

Ziva looked at her in concern before pushing past the now bouncy scientist to enter the lab. "Gibbs needs you to…dear God," she said almost dropping the box in her hands as she looked over at the evidence table.

"Hi Ziva," McGee said with a slight wave.

Abby quickly shut and locked the door behind her. "You can see him right, tell me I'm not going crazy," she asked hurriedly.

"McGee, you are alive," Ziva said in a daze.

"Not quite, I'm a ghost Ziva," he said.

"A ghost, but you are here, you do not look like a ghost," Ziva said, worrying about her own sanity.

"I know right, he looks all there, not ghosty at all," Abby said. "And you can touch him and you won't go through."

"Really?" Ziva asked and Abby nodded.

"Wanna try?" McGee asked as he stuck out his hand. Ziva hesitantly stepped closer and poked McGee's hand with her finger. She did it two more times each time harder but her finger didn't pass through him. She put two fingers on his wrist where his pulse point should be and pulled back as she didn't feel the blood pumping through his veins.

"This is incredible," Ziva whispered in awe before looking back up at him. "It is so good to see you again McGee," she said with a wide smile.

"It's good to see you too Ziva," McGee said with a smile of his own.

"Are we the only ones who can see you?" Ziva asked.

"So far yes," McGee said.

"Oh wait til Tony sees him, he'll faint," Abby said excitedly.

"That I would love to see," McGee said and the three friends laughed, before plotting a way for Tony to come down to the lab.

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I decided that Ziva should be the first to see McGee other than Abby because in the episode 'Chimera' it hinted that Ziva believed in the supernatural. Please review.


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